The field of this invention relates in general to ceiling fans, and in particular to light weight, wooden fan blades that resemble items or nature such as leaves.
Ceiling fans a popular commercial and consumer items. They move air in a room to more evenly distribute the air and thus keep the room at a more constant temperature. Ceiling fans are often used to cool people by providing a stream of air over their bodies. The air stream enhances body cooling by evaporating any surface body moisture and by removing heat from the surface of the skin.
Ceiling fans also have a decorative function. Their blades can assume a variety of shapes and can be made of plastic, wood or metal. One popular shape is the palm leaf blade such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. D433,747. Some manufacturers make their blades from natural fibers. However, these are often woven together and are free to rotate about a central axis because the natural fibers are no strong enough to withstand normal rotational and aerodynamic forces. Other makes blades of plastic which to do not have the ambiance, look and feel of a natural leaf. Often such blades have flat surfaces and only resemble leaves in their contours. Three dimensional blades require blade bodies that are relatively thick so that contours can be shown. Plastic and metal are often too heavy and otherwise do not present a natural appearance.
Wood as a blade material has other problems. Dense woods such as oak or mahogany are often too heavy for conventional light-weight fan motors, although it is possible to increase the bearing size of the fan motor. A wooden fan blade resembling a leaf would likely be between five-eights to three quarters inch thick. Wooden blades are made of longitudinal strips of wood that have their sides laminated together. Due to thermal cycling and operational stress, the laminated wooden blades may crack along the length of the blade. Under impact the blade could separate into one or more pieces and send harmful missiles about a room.